About us

Change Attitude operates globally focusing on creating films, theaters and games and other cultural expressions to be used by established children’s rights organizations, professionals working with or for children, as well as the general public.

We use culture as a tool to create strong and evocative expressions to raise awareness and increase people’s commitment to initiate mobilization to end sexualized violence against children. We believe in touching souls to move people to action.

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Change Attitude is a Swedish foundation founded in 2011 by photographer Ulla Lemberg. Ulla Lemberg has decades of experience in moving people to action for the protection of human rights.

We work with world-renowned artists and producers to create high quality projects for advocacy as well as educational purposes. We actively seek new forms of collaboration and continuously work on building venues where creative ideas and expertise can be used in conjunction to mobilize strongest possible impact for zero tolerance against sexualized violence against children.

Our work is based on the Convention on the Rights of the Child and it’s Optional Protocol.

Our latest project – Break the Silence – was launched on November 22, 2016 at the Swedish Embassy in Washington, USA, in collaboration with Kennedy Human Rights, Save the Children and the Swedish Institute.

“The Embassy of Sweden is proud to host and be part of this urgent discussion on how to broaden our perspectives and use innovative tools to safeguard the well-being of our children.” says Björn Lyrvall, Ambassador of Sweden to the U.S.

Our vision is a world of zero tolerance for sexualized violence against children.

Break the Silence is a unique project bringing four Cannes-awarded film directors from four different continents together with the aim to visualize different aspects of sexualized violence against children. The films have achieved international success and are distributed with a film guide designed to stimulate discussion and mobilize to action. Connect with us if you want to know more about how you can use Break the Silence in your organization.

“Break the Silence is a unique project inviting some of the most promising young directors of today to tackle the question of sexual abuse of children using their own voices. The idea of the project is to combine a strong artistic expression with a clear vision for creating social impact on a broader front” –David Herdies, executive producer of the films. Follow on Facebook

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Background – we need to talk about sexualized violence

Millions of children are sexually abused. The abuse takes many forms and children are trafficked to meet the demand of perpetrators. The sexual abuse is also documented and shared over the Internet. This occurs every day all over the world. Despite international, regional, and national efforts there are no signs that the crime is decreasing. Most people would agree this violation is the worst imaginable. Paradoxically, silence still prevails.

About the film guide

Break the silence comes with a guide to help create a subsequent discussion after the screening of films. You can watch the movies either separately on four different occasions, or one after another during one session.

After a screening we recommend at least one hour for reflection and discussion. If you watch four movies on one and the same occasion you should allocate at least two and a half hours for that. The guide is available in Swedish, English and Spanish.

Break the Silence was initiated by Change Attitude in collaboration with Momento Film. The project was made possible thanks to the generous support of the Culture Foundation of the Swedish Postcode Lottery.

Simón Mesa Soto examines what consequences the demand for sexual child abuse material might have on economically disadvantaged people in Colombia.

Sixteen-year-old Andrea lives together with her mother and sister in a socially and economically deprived area in the mountainous region of Medellín in Colombia. She is catching the bus into town to participate in an adult film casting.

Simón Mesa Soto talks about making his short film Madre.

• Winner of Best Short Fiction Film at Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano, Habana, Cuba. 2016
• Best international short, Festival Ícaro, Guatemala, 2016
• Winner of Live Action Gold Hugo at Chicago Film Festival 2016
• Nominated best short film at Cannes Court Métrage 2016

Frida Kempff, Sweden, sheds a light on reactions and responses when an adult becomes witness to a possible abusive situation involving a child. Dear Kid revolves around guilt and responsibility.

During a swimming practice a mother starts to feel uneasy about the coach’s relation to one of the children. But without any proof she faces a dilemma; to make an accusation of the worst kind, or to ignore a child who is possibly getting abused.

Anahita Ghazvinizadeh, USA, explores the relation between memory, recollection and abuse. When sexual exploitation from the childhood becomes a silent secret, it turns into a memory that affects a young woman emotionally and mentally as she faces the present.

After moving from Iran to the US, Leila spends a day at the suburban house of her uncle Reza who she last met 13 years ago as a young girl. Reza, his daughter, and his colleagues get together to welcome Leila.

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Hidden in the Zoo combines the classic board game with a computer game and augmented reality (AR) technology. The traditional game board is viewed through a tablet that transfers the basic picture of the board into an exciting 3D world. The theme is a zoo where each player, in total four children, hides a treasure.

The first one to find the other players treasures win. To get clues about the opponents hiding places luring, tricking and threatening is used. The same methods used by perpetrators trying to connect with children online for the purpose of sexual abuse or sexual exploitation. The game is based on research from authentic chat logs between offenders and children.

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The experience of playing the game will contribute to a dialogue about boundaries and self-awareness but also address different situations to where children may be exposed to risks. The game will be distributed with a guide that will help facilitate reflections and conversations following playing of the game.

“The University of Skövde has unique qualifications for this type of interdisciplinary research projects through our Informatics Research Centre. The project is of great importance to the future well-being of today’s young. We want to raise the awareness of risk behavior and a computer game can be an effective bridge to reach young children”, according to Dr. Ulf Wilhelmsson, senior lecturer in media arts, aesthetics and narration at the university.

Hidden in the Zoo has developed into a fully playable prototype that has been tested by children with promising results. The game has also received positive evaluations from members of the police and professional practitioners with experience in dealing with the criminality.

Background – the need to teach boundaries and self-awareness

Social media sites, instant messaging apps, and online gaming platforms offers new venues for perpetrators to connect with children. Online interactions may therefore expose children to risks when it comes to sexualized violence. Given that background we wanted to create a tool for children and adults addressing the risks of sexualized violence online.

Change Attitude is very proud to partner with University of Skövde. The university is the largest and most popular academic institution offering classes in computer game development in Sweden. The project was made possible thanks to the generous support from Sten A Olssons Foundation for Research and Culture. Hidden in the Zoo will be released in 2018.

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And the Child Said is a new project from Change Attitude designed to give children worldwide intuitive tools to help protect them selves against sexualized violence. The project is based on an animated character who acts as the child’s own voice in communicating with other children and adults addressing the risks for children to become subjects of sexualized violence online and in the real world.

And the Child Said is under development and will be available for children of different age groups and will be inclusive to children with disabilities. And the Child Said will be developed in collaboration with children.

United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Target 16.2 states “End abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children”.

Two Hours for the Children is an opportunity to gain more knowledge about the vulnerability of children and how we use the power of culture to make a difference. Movies, games, virtual reality and other modern cultural expressions have an outstanding ability to create commitment.

Invite friends or suggest to your colleagues at work to invest in Two Hours for the Children in order to contribute to a world of zero-tolerance for sexualized violence against children. Connect with us to find out more.

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CHANGE ATTITUDE is a religiously and politically independent foundation, based on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Change Attitude operates globally through cultural expressions to raise awareness and increase people’s commitment to end sexualized violence against children.